One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

Very similar requirements here (Southern Ontario). You have to have two fire exits to call it a bedroom.

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You are only young once. After that you have to think up some other excuse.

One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

That's actually where we were looking. Our RE Agent couldn't tell us where the 4th BR was supposed to be, either.

One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

I know bedrooms don't have to have closets here (our place right now has three bedrooms, and one closet), but the window is a must. The pantry did have a small window at the end, and there were also windows in the basement, so I guess that qualified. But it's kind of like someone putting out a personal ad claiming to be 6'5 and athletic when they're actually 4'2 and a marshmallow; do they think no one would notice that the realtor thinks they wouldn't mind sleeping in the kitchen?

One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

I know bedrooms don't have to have closets here (our place right now has three bedrooms, and one closet), but the window is a must. The pantry did have a small window at the end, and there were also windows in the basement, so I guess that qualified. But it's kind of like someone putting out a personal ad claiming to be 6'5 and athletic when they're actually 4'2 and a marshmallow; do they think no one would notice that the realtor thinks they wouldn't mind sleeping in the kitchen?

It's pretty funny, what they thing they can get away with. We had a giant pantry at our old apartment, and even then, I don't think you could make a bedroom out of it. I did know a guy who had a "1 bedroom" apartment that was a living room, with a closet exactly the size of a twin bed, with about two feet of space at the end of the bed to allow you to reach the bathroom, which was supposedly the bedroom.

We saw one house that had odd closets jutting out into the room, and the realtor told us that it was because somewhere along the line, someone was under the impression that you needed closets for it to officially be a bedroom, so they just tacked some on.

One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

I know bedrooms don't have to have closets here (our place right now has three bedrooms, and one closet), but the window is a must. The pantry did have a small window at the end, and there were also windows in the basement, so I guess that qualified. But it's kind of like someone putting out a personal ad claiming to be 6'5 and athletic when they're actually 4'2 and a marshmallow; do they think no one would notice that the realtor thinks they wouldn't mind sleeping in the kitchen?

It's pretty funny, what they thing they can get away with. We had a giant pantry at our old apartment, and even then, I don't think you could make a bedroom out of it. I did know a guy who had a "1 bedroom" apartment that was a living room, with a closet exactly the size of a twin bed, with about two feet of space at the end of the bed to allow you to reach the bathroom, which was supposedly the bedroom.

We saw one house that had odd closets jutting out into the room, and the realtor told us that it was because somewhere along the line, someone was under the impression that you needed closets for it to officially be a bedroom, so they just tacked some on.

My first apartment was like this. It was part of a cut-up Victorian house and was billed as a "2-bedroom" but the rooms were arranged all in a line: Front Door - Bedroom 1 - Kitchen - ?? (Dining?) - Bedroom 2, with the bathroom to one side connecting with both the ?? room and the 2nd bedroom. The back door opened out of the bathroom.

Fortunately it was just me living there, and then me and DH after we married, so we used them as was originally intended when the house was cut up: living room, dining room, bedroom. How do we know the original intention? When we bought our bed, the sales guy at the furniture store was the son of the previous owner of the house, had been part of the team that set it up as apartments, and had lived in our apartment after he finished college!

I forgot about the house that had a cutout in the wall big enough for a twin mattress (and enough space for someone to sleep on it). Since it took up no floor space and left plenty for playing, my kids thought that was great! I think I'd feel claustrophobic though.

How could I forget my own little apartment. It is a one bedroom, combined living/dining room, kitchen and 2 full baths. Why do I have more bathrooms than bedrooms? Beats me. One is used as a large closet.

I forgot about the house that had a cutout in the wall big enough for a twin mattress (and enough space for someone to sleep on it). Since it took up no floor space and left plenty for playing, my kids thought that was great! I think I'd feel claustrophobic though.

I am all about small spaces. When I was a child I would hide in the closet when I was upset. I would have been all about that kind of bed/cave/nest. Still would, in fact, if I were single.

Who needs to be single? I still have a cave and I've been co-habitating with my partner in crime for almost 4 years now. My cave is a short but long (It would be a walk-in closet, except the ceiling is only 4.5' tall) closet in the bedroom we use as an office. I have equipped it with a beanbag, plenty of blankets, a couple of small bookshelves, a good lamp and a radio/cd player.

One house we looked at had a bathroom that was so narrow you had to turn to the side to enter. I think that was the same house that had some light switches that were at knee-height.

One of the things that really drove me crazy when we were looking for a house -- the listings that said the house had four bedrooms but only had three -- maybe these 4th bedrooms were all secret rooms!

My friend bought a house that was listed as a 4-bedroom. Two of those were upstairs, one was the pantry (with no door) and the other was the basement

That wouldn't fly here (Maryland, USA). To be listed as a bedroom, it must be finished, have a closet, and a second exit like a window or another door, so that you could get out in case of fire.

That is federal, not just Maryland. If it doesn't have a closet it isn't a bedroom. Realtors might call it a bedroom, but when you try to have it appraised to sell the place, nope. No closet, no bedroom. Other things vary from state to state (like ceiling height) but that one is everywhere. Also basement rooms do not count. The square footage contributes to the overall value; but it is not part of the overall gross living area so any rooms down there are extra. If you have 3 bedrooms on the main level and 2 in the basement it is a 3 bedroom house. Thus concludes our appraisal class for today.

« Last Edit: October 20, 2011, 04:53:19 PM by hobish »

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That is federal, not just Maryland. If it doesn't have a closet it isn't a bedroom. Realtors might call it a bedroom, but when you try to have it appraised to sell the place, nope. No closet, no bedroom. Other things vary from state to state (like ceiling height) but that one is everywhere. Also basement rooms do not count. The square footage contributes to the overall value; but it is not part of the overall gross living area so any rooms down there are extra. If you have 3 bedrooms on the main level and 2 in the basement it is a 3 bedroom house. Thus concludes our appraisal class for today.

How does one distinguish a basement from a lower level? Our house is a split foyer; you enter on a landing, and go up 7 steps to the upper level (3 bedrooms, kitchen, dining room, 2 baths) or down 6 steps to the lower level (family room, 1 large bedroom, laundry, 1 bath). At the back of the house is a sliding door to the back yard from the family room, so the lower level is not entirely belowground.

So do I have a 4 bedroom house, as it was sold to us, or only a 3 bedroom?

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~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Common sense is not a gift, but a curse. Because thenyou have to deal with all the people who don't have it. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We looked at a supposed 3 bedroom house. Two bedrooms upstairs, and we can't work out whether the third was supposed to be the basement, or the room attached to the living room, which had a huge archway instead of a door.

You don't need closets here to make a bedroom, but I'm sure there are escape requirements.

If you were looking at a house in my hometown (that we looked at recently), I'd guess that we looked at the same house. There was no three bedroom that we could see...

Whomever looked at my family house when it's been sold 2x since we all moved out would come across the oddity of a tub, but no shower, in the upstairs hallway bedroom. Where was this shower? All the way downstairs, in the tiny bathroom off of the kitchen. No rhyme or reason behind that one....

My boyfriend lives in a house that has a little hallway niche that his roommate says was probably once for a built-in telephone, with a small shelf for a phone book, but he uses it as a religious altar, so that's more neat than bad.

My house (which we now use as a rental property) has one of those. I kept a striking knick-knack on it (a Japanese antique papier-mâché tiger toy on wheels). I draped the nook in artificial flowering vine. it was very cool!

My friend's house has a phone nook. It's adorable! She's really into vintage stuff, so she got a vintage phone (well, it *looks* vintage) and uses her nook for it's original purpose. I think it's awesome.

I forgot about the house that had a cutout in the wall big enough for a twin mattress (and enough space for someone to sleep on it). Since it took up no floor space and left plenty for playing, my kids thought that was great! I think I'd feel claustrophobic though.

My in-laws house has a cutout like that, about 4 feet up on the wall, with three smaller cut outs below it. It was my husband's room when he was a kid. He still thinks it's all kinds of awesome.